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Because it’s strange and beautiful and hot, people from everywhere converge on Florida and they bring their cuisine and their traditions with them. The Zest celebrates the intersection of food and communities in the Sunshine State.

Food meets feminism: UCF professor Kimberly Voss on newspaper women’s pages

A black-and-white photo of women sitting next to each other at a table filled with papers.
Between the 1940s and 1970s, most major American newspapers had a women’s page. Among the sections devoted to sports, business and so on, there was a section devoted to so-called women’s issues: family, fashions, furnishings and of course food.

Dr. Voss shares why these pages mattered, how their editors were viewed by the rest of the newsroom and how women’s sections editors paved the way for food writers of today.

Listen to the episode

This week, we’re exploring a brief yet important chapter of America’s culinary history. Between the 1940s and 1970s, most major American newspapers had a women’s page. Among the sections devoted to sports, business and so on, there was a section devoted to so-called women’s issues: family, fashions, furnishings and of course food.

University of Central Florida journalism professor Kimberly Voss, PhD, researched women’s pages for her book The Food Section: Newspaper Women and the Culinary Community.

In our conversation, Dr. Voss explains how newspaper women’s sections came to be—and why they went away. She also shares why these pages mattered, how their editors were viewed by the rest of the newsroom and how women’s sections editors paved the way for food writers of today.

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